City Hall Blog

Museum of the American Railroad should be rolling from Fair Park to Frisco by month’s end. Unless …

Last week crews were prepping trains at the Museum of the American Railroad for their coming move to Frisco

Plans to move the Museum of the American Railroad from its home in Fair Park to a new location in Frisco have been derailed countless times since 2010, in large part due to a lack of resources — resources that were spent, in part, fending off a lawsuit brought by the city of Dallas in January 2010. But according to Bob LaPrelle, the museum’s CEO, the long journey north could begin as early as a week from Sunday.

“We’re getting close,” LaPrelle says today. “Really, all we lack now is 150 feet of track up in Frisco, the connection between the lead track and the switch that’s been installed on the BNSF. Everything else has been built and is ready to go. It could be finished this week or early next week.”

At one time, the museum had hoped to be out of Fair Park by the end of 2011. A groundbreaking ceremony was held on May 31, 2011, at the Frisco location, 6455 Page Street. The Frisco grounds, at 12.5 acres, are about seven times as large as the space the museum occupies at Fair Park.

Some of the buildings began moving to Frisco in February, but to get the railroad cars to their new home workers laid 4,000 feet of track that hooks into existing railroad lines, including the Dallas, Garland and Northeastern Railroad, the Trinity Railway Express, the Burlington Northern Santa Fe and Union Pacific. It will cost about about $130,000 to move the trains, according to the museum. Members of the Bass family donated $20,000 to the cause; an anonymous donor gave $100,000.

LaPrelle was at Fair Park today meeting with, among others, Federal Railroad Administration officials, who OK’d the plan to put those trains back on the main line decades after they were turned into exhibits. That, says LaPrelle, was yet one more hurdle to clear before the trains could get rolling — “being compliant with all the safety standards and practices of modern-day railroading with older equipment,” as he puts it. “That’s what we signed off on today. And these are busy rail lines with freight and passenger service.”

Matter of fact: When the trains leave Fair Park they’ll share a track with the Trinity Railway Express line between Union Station and Irving, where they’ll hop on the BNSF line to make the final trek to Frisco. That, says LaPrelle, is why the trains will be moved in stages and only on Sundays, with the whole affair culminating with the move of the Union Pacific Steam Locomotive “Big Boy” built in 1941. And in case you were wondering …

“The engines will be towed with modern locomotives and crews from railroad companies,” says LaPrelle. “Some our stuff is ancient, and some of them don’t run. It’s just easier to use a modern crew that’s compliant with present-day regulations.”

The city, for those who may have forgotten, sued the museum in the hopes of getting it off Fair Park grounds in time for the 2010 State Fair of Texas, which wanted to use the site to show off new cars. That’s still an option, according to Mark Jarrell, senior manager at Fair Park — either that or more parking for Fair Park.

“We’re sad to see the museum go, but we’re glad for them as a business,” Jarrell says. “Any time we lose an attraction, there is a sense of loss, but the Frisco location is a great place, and there’s a lot of room for the museum to grow. I think the museum is ready to be there. It’s time.”

With that point, at least, LaPrelle agrees: “This will end up being my career,” he says with a laugh. “I didn’t plan on it. It’s fun, it’s been a challenge, but we’re about there.”